US chemical firm Chevron Phillips (CP) Chemical and state-owned oil/gas firm Qatar Petroleum are to jointly pursue development of a new petrochemical plant in the Gulf Coast region of the US. The US Gulf Coast II Petrochemical Project (USGC II) will include a 2,000-kilotonne/year ethylene cracker and two 1,000-kilotonne/year high-density polyethylene (HDPE) units.

CP Chemical will be the majority owner with a 51% share and Qatar Petroleum will take up 49% of the project. The American company will provide project management and oversight and be responsible for the operation and management of the facility. The preliminary cost of USGC II is approximately US$8 billion. A final investment decision (FID) is expected by 2021, followed by full funding and the award of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts, with targeted start-up of the new facility in 2024.

The site’s location would be in the Gulf Coast region, where there is direct access to the significant shale natural gas liquid reserves of the Permian Basin.

Last month, the two companies also agreed to pursue a joint venture development of a petrochemicals complex at the Ras Laffan Industrial City in Qatar to produce ethylene and HDPE.

The companies currently operate Qatar Chemical Company Ltd. and Qatar Chemical Company II Ltd., as well as the Ras Laffan Olefins Company.

The signing ceremony, hosted at the White House and witnessed by President Donald Trump and Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar, included CP Chemical President and CEO Mark Lashier and Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs, President/CEO of Qatar Petroleum. Chevron Corporation Chairman/CEO Michael Wirth and Phillips 66 Chairman/CEO Greg Garland also attended the ceremony.